Overview

Our highly experienced team of food and farming finance lawyers advises both banks and borrowers on different finance elements, ranging from security over agricultural assets to guidance for distressed businesses. Our team also offers counsel on cross-border finance transactions in the food and farming sector.

We advise clients of all sizes on a broad range of complex transactions. Our corporate finance transactional and advisory work ranges from mergers and acquisitions, private equity and venture capital as well as shareholder and constitutional arrangements.

We work closely with other specialists within our firm advising clients in areas such as intellectual property, manufacturing and supply agreements, food contamination and product recall, employment and family business issues.

What gives our food and farming finance team the edge is a genuine understanding of how relationships work within the industry – the strengths and vulnerabilities at particular levels of the supply chain as well as the opportunities these might present.

We have published The Pink Book 2, Burges Salmon’s legal 'bible' for landowners and farmers. The book covers topics as diverse as buying, selling and developing farmland, estate planning, trusts and partnerships, planning and employment law and is free to download.

Areas of focus

Our expertise in food and farming finance includes the following:

  • Equity and debt financing.
  • Corporate reorganisation and governance.
  • Structured financing relating to mergers and acquisitions activity in the food and farming sector.
  • Financing arrangements in the dairy industry.
  • Asset financing of agricultural and food production assets.
  • Invoice discounting facilities.
  • Advising in connection with distressed businesses in the sector.
Experience

Advised Arla on the merger of Arla AMCo and Arla Milk Link to create the UK’s largest dairy cooperative, including advising on related financing arrangements for Arla Milk Partnership Limited members.

Ongoing support to Rabobank International and Lloyds Banking Group on the complex debt and invoice discounting facilities for the Noble Group, the leading supplier of fresh eggs and luxury desserts to major retailers.

Advising Loungers Group in connection with an investment into the brand by private equity firm Piper and on a refinancing of intragroup debt and a capex facility for additional development and fit out.

Advising Yeo Valley on a range of corporate matters including on early stage investments.

Acting for HSBC plc on facilities of up to £29 million made available to corporates, partnerships and trusts comprising an agricultural estate to refinance existing indebtedness to two lenders.

Advising Medina Dairy on its restructure and refinancing.

Advising Ornua on issues arising from its contract for the purchase of cheese from The First Milk Cheese Company Limited.

Advising Santander in relation to working capital and capex facilities for a national restaurant chain.

Meet the team
Racheal Ruane

Rachael Ruane Partner

  • Corporate Banking
  • Real Estate Finance
  • Asset Finance and Asset Backed Lending
Dominic Davis

Dominic Davis Partner

  • Corporate
  • Mergers and Acquisitions
  • Joint Ventures
Emma Folkes

Emma Folkes Partner

  • Head of Rural Property
  • Estates and Land
  • Food and Farming

Food and Farming Finance

They are the pre-eminent team, arguably nationwide, not just in the South West. The team has expanded over recent years and we now know there is real depth across the board.

Chambers UK 2024

Key contact

Racheal Ruane

Rachael Ruane Partner

  • Corporate Banking
  • Real Estate Finance
  • Asset Finance and Asset Backed Lending

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